Karen Gulbrandsen

faculty

Karen Gulbrandsen, PhD

Professor

English & Communication

Contact

508-910-6932

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Liberal Arts 338

Education

Iowa State UniversityPhD
Northeastern UniversityMA
University of Wisconsin, MadisonBA

Teaching

Programs

Teaching

Courses

Principles of research, writing the thesis/project proposal, and initial thesis/project drafting. The course explores primary and secondary research methods. Course content includes in-depth and formal interviewing techniques, principles of field observation, content analysis, literature reviews, electronic data searches, historical analysis, focus groups, case studies, questionnaire design, use and abuse of statistical inquiry, fundamentals of logic and causation, and philosophical inquiry into qualitative and quantitative research perspectives. The course places major emphasis on how to write a proposal and thesis/project aimed at eventual publication.

This practicum includes an eclectic survey of theories, tests, and strategies, the supervised teaching of an undergraduate course, and weekly colloquia to assess classroom practice and to share approaches. In addition, each student will complete a related research project (e.g., a comparative analysis of leading textbooks, course structures, or writing needs in local businesses).

First semester. Graded CR/NC (upon approval of completed thesis or project).

Research

Research interests

  • Technical Communication
  • Technology Transfer
  • Rhetoric of Science & Technology

Karen Gulbrandsen received her Ph.D. in Rhetoric and Professional Communication from Iowa State University and her Masters in Technical and Professional Communication from Northeastern University in Boston. She holds a BA in English from the University of Wisconsin Madison.

Her research focuses on technology transfer — the movement of intellectual property from a university or private research lab to its development in industry — and the rhetorical figures that describe and stabilize the practice in historical and cultural contexts. Current discussions about technology transfer often address the "valley of death," a metaphor used to describe the problems associated with technology transfer, and hover around the tension between the traditional role of the public university and a more entrepreneurial one characterized by partnerships with industry. Her dissertation was a case study of a new university institute that received public financing to develop partnerships with industry leaders as a way to bridge the "valley of death," analyzing the ways in which the public good was described and understood by various stakeholders.

In addition to teaching classes in rhetoric and professional communication, she has more than twelve years of professional experience, working on publications and grant proposals for nonprofit organizations and state government.